The Big Dig

I had a tough time enjoying the field trip on Friday, knowing that back home, my backyard was undergoing a big transformation. After school, my son and I had to help a friend move some trailers around the storage lot, so I didn't get home until after 2pm and WOW - that was one giant hole back there.

The did manage to dig out a pretty big hole for the cistern, but more importantly, they've got the shallow end and most of the spa corner dug out. The cut-outs for the bench and shelf for the spa are clear. The backhoe has to scoop, then swivel around and dump into the bobcat that shuttles the dirt along the side of the house to the dump truck in the street. Our side yard (and part of the neighbors') is now a muddy track, and we have deep treads across the front yard to the street.

Since it hasn't rained in a while, and none in the long-term forecast, I started troubleshooting he sprinkler system and .... nothing. New fuse is fine. Hubby fixed the timing valve that was shorting out. The electronics appear to be working and the control box thinks that the system is running, but no water. So I check the reclaimed water valve by the street and it's closed. Hmmm. After a query to the backhoe operator, I find that they shut it off for a leak and he points to the spot where the bobcat treads dig in a turn by our landscaping berm, which is right about where the troublesome sprinkler control valve is located. So that means I'm going to be hand-watering all the zones for a while. A long while.

There is also an interesting pile of mangled metal and concrete in the front yard - a closer inspection reveals that it's a couple of the old seawall tiebacks that were dug out. We had figured there would be two or three in the span between the new blocks, but unsure of how deep they were buried or the condition of the metal rods.

By the end of the day Friday, they've gotten about 2/3 of the pool dug out. Turns out they're working over the weekend so I'm going to miss even more because we'll be out on the boat overnight Saturday. I'm not sure why, but I feel compelled to watch every moment of progress.